


Until We Have Faces

by AwakeAndAliveSpartan



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: ATCU and SHIELD are the baddies, F/M, Hellfire! Ward, Inhuman Persecution, Inhuman! Ward, Post S2 AU, Vigilante! Ward, Working Summary
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-02
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:21:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22982431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AwakeAndAliveSpartan/pseuds/AwakeAndAliveSpartan
Summary: When the world deems that your very existence is a sin, how far are you willing to go to save all that you care about? Are you willing to become someone the world sees as a monster to become a savior for others?But, is Grant Ward willing to do all of that to exact revenge for the wrongs committed against him and the rest of the Inhumans?  And can Daisy help him before he sacrifices everything he has left?
Relationships: Skye | Daisy Johnson/Grant Ward
Comments: 14
Kudos: 42





	1. Uncertain Flame of Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The beginning.

Chapter 1

(New York City)

Daisy drew a sharp breath, trying to ignore the building headache that was quickly coming on. She tried to block out the cries of the Pro Humanity ‘advocates’ that were currently protesting in Times Square. The very ‘advocates’ that she, May, and Elena were sent to watch over in case anything went wrong. Meaning in case these  _ bigots _ attacked anyone they suspected to be an Inhuman.

Daisy hated the Pro Humanity group with a strong, burning passion. They had formed soon after the Terrigen Incident 2 years ago after the cloud started claiming its first victims. They claimed that the Inhumans were an ‘infection’, a blight upon humanity itself. A blight that would cause the downfall of humanity if it wasn’t stopped in time. These so-called ‘purists’ wanted Inhumanity extinguished, many taking drastic measures to do it themselves. They would jump and would often kill anyone they suspected of being Inhuman, even if the person wasn’t even Inhuman. 

And to make matters worse, there was also the  _ Advanced Threat Containment Unit _ , or the ATCU. The organization was quickly put together after the Terrigen Incident to arrest any Inhuman they determined to be dangerous. That was actually the case at first, but Daisy knew that they were starting to arrest any Inhuman, dangerous or not. And there was still no telling to  _ what  _ happened to the Inhumans that the ATCU arrested. 

The government was failing to protect Inhumans. Daisy suspected that they were refusing to pass any laws that protected them, especially since they still allowed the ATCU and their violent tactics to still stand. And, honestly, SHIELD was not much better. People acted like Inhumanity was a virus that they could catch and many businesses were starting to refuse service to anyone who could be chalked up to being an Inhuman. And God forbid the Inhuman’s physical features had been mutated by the Terrigen Incident.

Daisy knew that Inhumanity itself was starting to become illegal.

“May, how much longer do we have to stand out here and listen to this bullshit?” Daisy asked, turning to look at May. “I’m tired of hearing that I’m hellspawn and I know that Elena doesn’t want to either.”

May pulled her lips into a tight line, “Coulson was ordered to send a team to stay until the protest is over.” she answered. “And there’s no telling to when that’ll be. Since the protest hasn’t turned violent, we can’t force them to stop. Freedom of speech.”

“Freedom of speech my ass.” Daisy spat, crossing her arms. “Shit like this shouldn’t even be allowed. It’s pure hate.”

May shrugged, “As much as I would like to sock one of them in the face, I can’t.” She swallowed, “We just have to bear it until it’s over. Or until something happens.”

“Why are humans so hateful?” Elena asked. “It isn’t like  _ all  _ Inhumans are evil. Yes, some are. But, it is the same way with humans.”

“People latch onto hating whoever they find different.” Daisy grumbled. “This is nothing new. At all. People have always-”

Daisy was cut off as the crowd started screaming and running, she spun to see a column of flame in the middle of the square. She took a step forward, placing a hand on her gun as a figure clad in black stepped out of the flames. 

“Quiet!” the figure roared, the flames quickly dissipating. The crowd quickly stopped and grew quiet, staring right at the figure. 

Daisy frowned, studying the figure as it took a step forward. He was clearly a man, well over six feet and bulky with muscle. He wore a black leather jacket with black jeans and boots. Chains were wrapped tightly around his wrists. The most frightening thing was the demon-like mask he wore. It was clear that he wanted to keep his identity a secret.

The man turned to a scared cameraman, who was starting to back away, “You. You stay.” he said, his voice distorted by a voice modulator. “Keep the camera on me. At all times.” He laughed as the camera was slowly pointed up towards him. He took a step forward, “Keep the feed going. If anyone cuts it off, the man’s dead. And if anyone tries anything funny, police or SHIELD,  _ everyone  _ here is dead.”

Daisy swallowed and looked to May for any kind of direction, “What the hell is this?”

May held up a finger, “Wait. Let’s see what he wants. There’s too many people here for us to try and attack. He’s clearly pyrokinetic, he could do some serious damage.”

Daisy looked back to the man, figuring that May was right.

“Look at you all cowering in fear.” the man laughed. “That’s how  _ we  _ feel every day! We hide in fear from people like you. Why is it so hard to realize that we just want fucking peace!” His tone quickly turned into anger, “And you! You people protest our very existence! Acting like we are a plague, some kind of blight upon humanity! We didn’t ask for the Terrigen Incident!” 

Literal fire poured from the eyeholes in his mask as he took a step forward, still glaring at the camera, “You attack people on the slightest suspicion that they’re Inhuman.” he continued. “Do you have any idea of how many innocent humans have been killed because of your hate? Far more than any Inhuman has killed. Humans have always hated who they deem different. Different skin colors, religions, anything. You can’t stand someone who deviates from the norm, can you? 

Now, tell me, who’s the true monster here?”

“Go to hell, you devil!” someone screamed, throwing a rock at him. 

The man started laughing as the rock bounced right off of his mask, the flames still pouring from his eyes, “You don’t have to call me what I already know what I am.” he jeered. “I am fully aware of what I am, but I was already a monster well before the Terrigen Incident. My Inhumanity has nothing to do with what kind of man I am. Many Inhumans are innocent. They just want to survive. Just like anyone else.”

Daisy swallowed, the man had a point. A very good point. Of course she wanted to survive. There was no way in hell she wanted to be killed by one of these bigots.

“I found my own brother dead in his own blood six months ago.” the man continued, his voice small. “Killed by one of the Pro Humanity purists. He was only a fucking watchmaker!” he screamed. “He did nothing wrong! What did he do to deserve being gutted like a fucking pig?! Nothing at all!

We’re slaughtered and rounded up like sheep by the ATCU and SHIELD. They claim that they only do so to the ‘dangerous’ ones. Spoiler, they deem every last one of us dangerous. I spent two months in one of their facilities in and out of consciousness, being dissected like a lab rat just to see how I tick. I remember children in bandages, crying for their parents. Mothers screaming in rage because their unborn children were ripped from their wombs. Innocents treated like animals. Innocents starved. I don’t even think they believed we needed to eat because we aren’t human. 

We need sleep, we need food, we need water like anyone else.” he continued, sparks flying high into the sky. “We’re still people! We still deserve humane treatment!” He took another step towards the cameraman and stared straight into the camera, “And if you think otherwise, you deserve to burn in the deepest hell.

You may think me as a devil, but I’ll gladly embrace that. I don’t care to what I’ll become, as long as things change.” he continued. Daisy didn’t know what to think. She hadn’t heard of the ATCU doing any of  _ that.  _ Something was wrong and she felt sick to her stomach. 

“I am here to make an announcement. The age of Inhuman oppression and persecution ends today. I will come after anyone who decides to attack anyone due to Inhumanity. And I will tear the ATCU down piece by fucking piece. That goes for SHIELD, too.” He looked directly at Daisy, freezing her in place, before looking back to the camera. “This ends today.”

The camera suddenly burst into flames and the cameraman dropped it with a scream, turning and running away. The man laughed again, “What are you all looking at?! Get out of here before my generosity fades and I start doing some  _ real  _ damage.” The crowd quickly began to run, clearly too afraid to try anything.

The man erupted into a column of flame, disappearing from view. 

Daisy quickly turned to face May and Elena, “What the hell was that?!”

May took a deep breath, “A terrorist, that’s what he was. His words may resonate with you, Daisy. But, he was threatening mass slaughter. That isn’t the way to do things. And SHIELD hasn’t done the things he claims. Don’t listen to his lies.” She looked at Elena, “She can come with me. Time to show her a few more ropes with how to deal with things. Make sure that all these people leave.”

Daisy was left alone, unsure of what to do. The man made sense. A  _ whole  _ lot of sense. She understood his pain deeply. But what he was intending to do, it would be slaughter. But, if SHIELD was responsible for what the ATCU was doing, she needed to know something. Before it was too late. Things weren’t making sense at all. 

She went to head into the confused and still-fleeing crowd, but a gust of heat stopped her. A voice whispered in her ear.

“I tell the truth, Skye. Don’t listen to what SHIELD tells you. Go to those coordinates and I will tell you what I know. I am the only one you can trust.”

She spun around, looking for the source of the voice. But, she found no one. She looked down to find a paper tucked into her gun holster. She grabbed it,  _ “Wait. Skye? No one calls me that anymore. No, I know that voice.” _

She unfolded the paper to find a set of coordinates with instructions hastily written in a hand she knew,  _ “Be here in 2-3 days. Come alone. Make sure no one follows you. Memorize these coordinates and destroy this.”. _

Her stomach grew cold as she crumpled up the paper in her hand, knowing just who the mystery man was. The man she could hear nearby news reporters calling a ‘terrorist’, ‘extremist’, and ‘threat’. She even heard someone give him the name ‘Hellfire’. A name befitting for a flame-wrapped devil hellbent on revenge. But, she knew who he really was.

“ _ Grant? _ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes with this: The fish oil didn't happen. It was a Terrigen cloud, like in the comics. Grant tried to mend things with Thomas before finding him killed. And this is a pretty dark Ward. This is pretty much inspired by Promare, to get an idea. This is also my last attempt at writing something new, unfortunately. My motivation for writing for Grant and Skyeward is pretty much gone, but I'd thought I'd try to get this out. I hope that you enjoy this! Please leave a kudos or a comment!


	2. Just Who do You Trust?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daisy finds out a sliver of the truth.

(3 Days Later)

It took a good bit of work, but Daisy had managed to convince Coulson that she was ‘taking a mini vacation’ to see a ‘friend’ that needed her help. There was no way in hell that she was going to let Coulson know the truth. That she was really going to confront none other than Grant Douglas Ward.

Even if she didn’t fully trust Grant, especially after that show he had put on for the camera, she still wanted to hear what he had to say. Grant always had a flair for the dramatic, but he wouldn’t make up a story as grand as this. There had to be  _ some  _ truth in what he was saying. But, what had he meant by ‘don’t believe what SHIELD tells you’? And why had he claimed that SHIELD was also responsible for rounding up Inhumans? She knew that the ATCU did so, but SHIELD? Something wasn’t right here. 

And then there was his claims of what the ATCU  _ did  _ with the Inhumans that they captured. 

Honestly, Daisy couldn’t piece anything together and she knew that Grant wasn’t the best choice in her opinion. But, she had to do  _ something _ , especially if what he said about the ATCU and SHIELD were true.

She had taken a car and had disabled the tracking device so Coulson couldn’t get curious and see where she was headed. She couldn’t risk that. Especially if Coulson had a part in whatever the hell was happening. 

The coordinates took her to a small town in rural Georgia. One of those places SHIELD never thought to monitor. But, such a small town was also dangerous. A town where everyone knew one another was bound to raise suspicions. Surely someone like Grant was smart enough to  _ not  _ do somewhere like this. Or, he was thinking on a whole other level than she was.

Once she was in town, her burner phone chimed with a message. Daisy picked it up with a frown and saw that the message was nothing more than a nearby address. How had Grant gotten this number? Especially for a burner phone of all things. She shook her head, deciding not to dwell on that right now.

The address took her to a small mom and pop diner. Her stomach churned as she approached it. Grant had a sadistic sense of humor. A diner was where she revealed to him that she had figured him out back during the Uprising. She ignored the sick feeling in her stomach and went in. 

“What brings you to our small town, honey?” the waitress asked as Daisy was seated. “Don’t see many strangers in these parts.”

Daisy shrugged and gave her a fake smile, “Just visiting an old friend.” she lied. “I’m just passing through, though. Thought that I’d stop and get something to eat.”

The waitress smiled, “Well, take a look at the menu and let me know when you’re ready.”

Daisy smiled again as the waitress walked off. She picked up the menu and began to fake read it, until a voice drew her attention.

“You know, I didn’t think that you would actually come.”

She swallowed as she dropped the menu, looking up to see Grant sliding into the booth right across from her. He didn’t look any different from the last time she had seen him, which was when she shot him in the back. But, his beard was thicker and his hair had grown out, which he kept spiked up in the front. He also looked like he had packed on some more muscle.

“You have a sick sense of humor, you know.” she deadpanned.

He raised an eyebrow, “What do you mean?”

Daisy gestured around them, “Our meeting place being a diner.”

Grant’s lips pulled into a thin smile, “You know I couldn’t help myself. And besides, the people here know me.” he began to explain, leaning back into the booth. “They’ve done a lot for Hydra.”

Her stomach fell, “This is a  _ Hydra  _ town?” she asked, the acid in her stomach starting to churn again.

He shrugged, “There used to be a base nearby. This town was set up by the agents that worked there about 40 years ago. Hydra’s vanished from here, but they don’t really like SHIELD all that much. There are also some Inhumans in hiding here because this place falls right outside of SHIELD’s radar. It’s a good little hideout from both the ATCU and SHIELD.”

“Why did you want me to come here, Ward?” Daisy asked coldly. “What was with that freakshow the other day?” She pointed to the lone TV in the corner, which happened to be showing a news report about the ‘terrorist attack’.

Grant let out a sharp laugh, “Funny how they’re calling it a terrorist attack when I didn’t even hurt anyone.” he stated, looking back to her. “But, I made a statement, that’s all that matters.”

“You said that you had something to tell me. That I couldn’t trust what SHIELD tells me.”

Grant nodded and pulled an inch-thick folder out of his jacket and slid it across the table to her. “I wasn’t lying.” he said. “Believe it or not. I’ve been after the ATCU for four months now. It’s been six since my brother died.”

“So, that was real?”

Grant’s shoulders slumped, “I… I was trying to rebuild things with Tommy. And just, one day, I came by his workshop to visit him and I found him lying in his own blood, his throat slit all the way open. The men who did it were still nearby and attacked me because they put two and two together that we were brothers. Three men. I incinerated them all.” His voice lowered, “The Pro-Humanity purists want nothing more to kill us all. One of the men must’ve contacted the ATCU sometime before I killed them. There were soon soldiers surrounding me and they managed to render my powers useless and get me unconscious.”

Daisy narrowed her eyes, “How did you get powers?”

“The same way as any other Inhuman did. The Terrigen Incident. The cloud that covered the country. I remember everything going dark and I felt like I was burning in the deepest part of hell. And I woke up like this. Left Hydra behind and went on my own to understand what I had become. And apparently that’s an abomination in humanity’s eyes.”

“Y’all make up y’all’s minds yet?”

Daisy looked up to see the waitress standing there, order pad in her hand. The waitress’s eyes shrunk in fear as she saw Grant sitting there.

Grant smiled and held up two fingers, “Bring us two beers, Grace.” he stated. “If you don’t mind.”

Grace nodded her head and ran off.

Daisy looked back to Grant, raising an eyebrow, “What the hell was that?”

He shrugged, “I got in a scuffle the other day.” he answered. “It’s not a big deal. Tore the shit out of the other guy, though. She saw most of it. Guy jumped me for being Inhuman, so it’s not like it’s a big loss or anything. Now, let’s get back to the point, Skye.”

Daisy about corrected him on her name, but she knew that now wasn’t the time for that. “Fine…” She took a sharp breath, “What did the ATCU do to you, Ward?” she asked. “You ripped into them the other day.”

Grant swallowed, pain starting to shine in his eyes, “Like I said, they round Inhumans up like it’s nothing. And it doesn’t matter to how old they are. They experiment on them until there’s nothing left to experiment on. Children are cut open. Unborn children are ripped from their mothers’ wombs. Nothing is taboo to them.”

“Then, what did they do to  _ you _ ?”

“My powers give me a high regenerative factor. As long as I’m not too weak or it’s something like my heart or brain, my body parts grow back.” He pushed up his sleeve to reveal a thick, angry scar that circled right below his elbow. Daisy tried to ignore the other scar on his forearm. 

“I… My arm has grown back ten times now.” he said, his voice weak. “They always wanted to test the extent of my healing. That’s… That’s only one of the scars. I don’t remember much from those two months because I was always in and out of consciousness. But…” He took a sharp, ragged breath, “I remember the starving children in bandages. The dead bodies. I guess… I guess I was one of the lucky ones. At least they kept me feed. Only because I was useful to them. The others? They let them starve and die. It’s a genocide, Skye. And SHIELD has its hands in it.” He pointed at the file, just as Grace set two beer bottles down and left as quickly as she could.

“That? That right there is information I got from an inside man. It details SHIELD’s involvement with the ATCU and the Inhuman genocide.”

Daisy reached for the file as Grant picked up his beer, “You know, I never liked Price, but I didn’t take her as a murderous mastermind. All she ever advocated for was Inhuman control. A leash.”

Grant shook his head, taking a swig of his beer, “That’s because Rosalind Price is just a face for the ACTU. She isn’t the true leader of the organization. At least not anymore.”

“What… What do you mean?” Daisy opened the file to see a letter.

“That letter there. It details a mission to round up a group of homeless Inhumans to bring them in for experimentation.” Grant pointed to the bottom of the page, “Look who’s the authorizing signature. I didn’t think he was  _ this  _ mad.”

Daisy’s heart skipped a few beats as she read out the signature,  _ “Philip J. Coulson”.  _ She licked her lips and shakily looked back up to Grant, “This has to be fake, Ward. There’s no way…. I…”

“I told you that you couldn’t trust what SHIELD tells you. SHIELD and ATCU have been one in the same for at least the past 6 months. They fused together and no one ever noticed. Rosalind may be the face of the ATCU, but Coulson’s the true head. He acts like SHIELD and the ATCU are seperate, but the truth is that the ATCU is just a subsection of SHIELD. Coulson keeps it off the books to keep SHIELD looking as clean as possible. The heinous acts the ATCU commits is only contributed to the ATCU. But, Coulson has been signing off on every little experiment for at least the past 6 months. Meaning, he’s responsible for what happened to me. He’s responsible for what’s happening to those kids and mothers.”

Daisy couldn’t think. It was like someone ripped her heart right out of her chest and tore it apart. Ten times worse than she ever felt with Grant. Grant frowned as the ground started to tremble beneath them.

“Skye, watch yourself.” he warned. 

“You… You’re lying, Ward. There’s no way Coulson would ever do things like this.”

He shook his head, “Every paper in that file is 100 percent real, I’m afraid. It even details members of your very team that have been working with him for the ATCU thing.” he continued. “Coulson’s not the heroic man you think he is. He’s far from that. Looks like the Devil himself has been hiding right underneath your nose this entire time.”

Daisy swallowed, trying to steady herself, “Why… Why would he do such a thing?”

Grant shrugged, “That’s what I want to find out, Skye. It’s clear that he’s afraid of us. But, to take that fear to  _ this  _ level? It’s absurd. He wants the Inhumans wiped straight off the map. And I want to stop him and find out why before he manages to accomplish just that. SHIELD is your enemy now. You can’t trust anyone but yourself.”

“That’s easy for you to say.”

Grant smirked, “I know this is hard for you to believe, Skye, but you can trust me. We’re on the same side here.” he said. “I won’t hurt you.”

“Then what’s with that stupid mask you put on?”

“The Inhumans need a symbol.” he replied. “It’s a mask. Something I can hide behind. Something the human public can be afraid of without compromising myself. If the Pro-Humanity purists and the ATCU can get it into their heads that if they do something, the ‘big and scary’ masked terrorist will exact revenge on them, then maybe they’ll stop.”

Daisy bit her lip, “And what if that just gives them an excuse to keep attacking innocent Inhumans?”

“Don’t worry, I’ve thought about that.”

She stared at her untouched beer as Grant pulled out a wad of cash and placed it on the table for the waitress. He slid out of the booth and stopped right beside her, leaning in towards her ear. Daisy shivered as his beard tickled the edge of her ear.

“If I were you, I’d leave SHIELD behind, Skye.” he whispered. “They are not your friends anymore. Take your stuff and leave.” He placed a small scrap of paper in her hand, “If you want to help me, come here within the next week. Alone. You can work on figuring out just who you can trust later.”

And just like that, he was gone, leaving Daisy sitting there alone with her thoughts. Honestly, she couldn’t even begin to wrap her head around what he had told her. She stared at the open file, trying to figure out to  _ why _ Coulson would even be responsible for such a thing. But one thing was clear, though.

She couldn’t trust anyone anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I'm taking some plot points from my other fics and twisting them around. Hopefully, doing that will work out. So, Daisy has talked to Grant and has found out to just who is behind everything with the ATCU. And as you can tell, this will NOT be a Coulson friendly fic. What will happen next? Keep the comments and kudos coming!


	3. A World so Cold and Cruel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daisy tells Fitz the truth and decides to head for Ward.

(Sometime Later)

Daisy stared down in horror at the file Grant had given her. Half of the included papers were strewn all over her ‘borrowed’ car. Currently, the paper detailing the members of her team who were in cahoots with Coulson and whatever the hell it was he was doing was laying tear-stained in her lap. 

“Goddamn it.” she muttered, her heart feeling like it had splintered and shattered everywhere. “Goddamn it!” The car gave a little lurch underneath her as her power escaped her skin. Her eyes trailed the paper again, which was nothing more than Grant’s messy scrawl listing the names that his contact had obtained. 

_ “Simmons. Hunter. Morse.” _

Daisy took a sharp breath to try and steady herself so she didn’t accidentally set off an earthquake. Honestly, Morse didn’t take her by surprise. The woman had always been wary of her and Elena, and not in a good way. And, she figured that Hunter would just take after her. But Simmons? Even though it made sense after the way the woman had originally treated her after San Juan, it still hurt. Daisy had thought Simmons was warming up to the prospect of Inhumans, but it seemed like she had greatly mistaken. Simmons just probably saw the Inhumans as yet another specimen and Coulson was allowing her to act like such.

But, did Simmons really have it in her to experiment on children? Rip unborn children from their mothers? Even if Simmons was a little too scalpel-happy, that didn’t seem like her at all. Daisy just had to hope that she was right about that feeling.

But, did that mean everyone else was safe? Fitz? Fitz was always around Simmons and it was possible that she had rubbed off on him. But, Fitz had been the very first person to accept Daisy after she had gotten her powers. Daisy didn’t feel like the man could do such a thing, so she figured that he was safe.

Mack? Mack was in love with Elena and was fully accepting of her powers. So, Daisy crossed him off the list. She didn’t take him for a hate monger anyways. 

May. Daisy was half and half on her. While May  _ had  _ been displaying her disgust for the Pro Humanity protesters, it could still be a ploy. May was so far up Coulson’s ass that she probably couldn’t see straight. Or she was just blind to what Coulson had been doing. Daisy just had to hope that it was the latter. She knew that she would have to approach May carefully. Fitz and Mack were probably her best bets right now. 

Along with Grant.

Now, Daisy wasn’t sure of whether or not she could trust him or not. The threat of him doing something she deemed  _ bad  _ was always there. And if he were to ever be found out, if that mask was ripped off of him, he would certainly be killed. Or worse. 

Coulson hated Grant with every fiber of his body. Death would be a blessing. Coulson would find a way to make Grant suffer. There would be no mercy on Coulson’s part. He’d probably ramp up the torture Grant had faced at the hands of the ATCU by tenfold. Hell, she there was no telling if Coulson had actually known that Grant was being experimented on. There was a good chance that he did and was directly overseeing it. That thought caused Daisy to feel sick. 

“I’ve got to get out of there.” she muttered. “I don’t care if Coulson doesn’t want me leaving.” She placed the file aside and started the car. “It’s my only choice.”

* * *

(The Playground, Sometime Later)

Daisy quickly stuffed her things into a bag, keeping an eye on her surroundings. She didn’t want the wrong person to walk in on her. She couldn’t risk that. Especially if it were Simmons or Morse. Or worse. Coulson. 

If Coulson suspected her of ‘turning’ against SHIELD, she would be done for. If Coulson was insane enough to oversee a practical genocide, he would have no problem with doing something to her. Whatever that something would end up being. 

Daisy hated that her last option was none other than Grant Ward, but she had no other choice. He had enough conviction to take SHIELD down. She just had to hope that those files he had were the truth. But, truly, at this point she didn’t have her doubts. Coulson and the others  _ had  _ been acting odd lately. Simmons had hardly been seen, probably holed up in some lab somewhere. She still couldn’t wrap her head around the fact that her so-called ‘friends’ were responsible for such a thing. 

She couldn’t let anything else happen. She thought she could’ve been more perceptive, that she could’ve figured something out before now. Honestly, she was mentally beating herself over that thought. Why hadn’t she noticed something before now? Unless, Coulson was just that good at masking himself. 

And he had called Grant a monster for doing the very same thing. What a hypocrite. 

Daisy knew that she had to put an end to all of this somehow. She just didn’t know of where to begin. This was-

“Daisy?”

She froze up and spun around to see Fitz standing in the doorway, desperately trying to hide her bag behind her back. She must’ve been so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn’t felt him come in. And had forgotten to lock the door. 

“Uh, what’s up?”

Fitz blinked and frowned, tilting his head to look behind her, “Why are you packing a bag?” he asked. “You just got back.”

Daisy swallowed and knew that she needed to go ahead and tell him. She figured that she could at least trust him. “Close the door and lock it.” 

“Huh? Why?”

“Just do it!” she snapped. She swallowed again as confusion settled onto the engineer’s face. “Sorry, but… It’s important.”

Fitz’s frown grew as he turned around and closed the door, locking it just as Daisy had said. He turned back around to her, raising an eyebrow as he noticed a file laying on her bed. “What’s this about?” he asked. “You’ve been acting weird since this morning? What happened?”

Daisy reached for the file and handed it to Fitz, “Everything you need to know is in this file.” she stated. “Just promise me that you’ll keep this between the two of us.”

He looked down to the thick file, “Where did this come from?” he asked. “I’m assuming that you didn’t go meet a friend. This has something to do with SHIELD. Who did you go see?”

“Ward.”

Fitz’s face fell, “Ward?!” he hissed. “You went to go see that maniac? Why the bloody hell would you do such a thing?!”

“Shhh!” she exclaimed. “Keep it down! No one else needs to hear us. Ward was the masked man that crashed that protest.”

“But… Ward doesn’t have powers.”

“He… He was affected by the Terrigen Incident as well. And soon caught by the ATCU and tortured for two months. He was telling the truth at that protest, I guess. He came to me saying that there was something he needed to tell me. That I couldn’t trust anyone. I decided to go. And he gave me that file. He… He found out the truth about the ATCU.

Open the file.” she continued. “Read the first letter. It… It details a mission to round up a group of homeless Inhumans and bring them in for some kind of experimentation. See who authorized it.”

Fitz’s frown grew, but he remained silent as he opened the file. His eyes skimmed the letter, widening in horror as he reached the signature at the bottom of the page. He looked back up, his face pale.

“C-Coulson?” he stammered. “Since when? I… This doesn’t make sense, Daisy.”

“It doesn’t make sense to me either, Fitz. That’s what I’m trying to figure out. Ward… Ward said that Rosalind Price is just a face for the ATCU, that Coulson actually calls the shots. I don’t understand to why, but I want to figure it out. Because, if it’s the truth, then Coulson’s got a hell of a lot of blood on his hands. See… See the next page….” She trailed off, not sure of how to tell Fitz that Simmons was helping Coulson with whatever the hell was going on.

Fitz turned the page, unsure of what Daisy wanted to show him, but he quickly felt sick as he saw Simmons’ name hastily scrawled on a page along with Morse and Hunter. He quickly looked back up, tears building in his eyes, “What.. What the hell does this mean? Who wrote this?”

“Ward compiled that list.” she answered. “From a SHIELD contact he has. Those are members of our team who are working with Coulson for the ATCU. I don’t know to  _ what  _ they’re doing for him. But, whatever it is, it’s against the Inhumans.”

“Why… Why would Simmons do such a thing?” he croaked. “Why would she help the experimentation of an entire race?” He shook his head, “That doesn’t sound like her.” He handed the file back to Daisy.

Daisy took the file and placed it in her bag, zipping it up, “Not just experimentation,  _ genocide _ . If what Ward found is true, most of the Inhumans end up dead after the experiments. Coulson wants us dead and I don’t know to why.”

Fitz bit his lip, unsure of what to say, “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going back to Ward. No matter how bad it sounds, he’s our last choice.” she stated. “He’s Inhuman, too. And he wants my help. And I can put him in his place if he decides to do otherwise.”

Fitz decided not to protest her decision, knowing that there was nothing that he could do to do that. Daisy could take care of herself, she knew what she was getting into by going with Grant. 

“Then… Then, what do I do?” Fitz asked, looking straight at her. “Who do I trust if I can’t trust Simmons?”

Daisy shrugged, “I assume that Mack’s safe because of Elena. May’s expressed some disgust against the Pro-Humanity purists, but she’s so far up Coulson’s ass that I really don’t know.” she explained. “Right now, you can only trust yourself.”

“But you’re going straight back to Ward? You know, the guy they’re now calling a terrorist?”

“The world doesn’t know it’s him. Hell, I don’t even think that Coulson’s put two and two together yet.” Daisy turned her back to Fitz. “I know Ward isn’t the best person to trust, but he’s all we have right now until we can figure out just what the hell is going on. Better him than no one at all, I suppose.”

She took a breath, “You still need to stay here, though. Act like you don’t know to where I went if asked. Stay clueless. Perhaps Ward and I can figure something out of how to get you out of here. But, for right now, you can be our little spy. Don’t go too deep. Just tell us what’s going on here while I’m gone. Don’t put yourself in harm’s way. If Coulson can be responsible for a genocide, then he’ll surely do something to harm you if you do something that he doesn’t like.”

Fitz nodded, but remained silent.

Daisy sighed, “Turns out an even bigger monster than Ward ever was has been right under our noses this entire time and we didn’t notice a thing.

We can’t trust Coulson, Fitz. We can’t trust anyone but ourselves now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm gonna try to keep the regularly updated since I have online classes now. And sorry for the wait, I was busy readjusting to how my classes are different now. So, Daisy has decided to take Ward's offer and tells Fitz the truth, knowing that she can at least trust him. Any guesses of what's to come? Keep the comments and kudos coming!


	4. The Dead Won't Stay Buried

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daisy meets up with Grant.

(Sometime Later, Elsewhere)

Grant looked up with a frown as a heat signature suddenly appeared at the door. He stood up, the hairs on the back of his neck prickling. But, he soon relaxed as he processed the signature and realized who it was.

“Skye.”

He stepped out the line of sight for the door, not wanting anyone to see him whenever Daisy opened the door. The door soon swung open and Daisy crept in, a bag slung over her shoulders. 

Grant swallowed, “Close the door.” he half growled, causing Daisy to spin towards him. “Now.”

She wrinkled her nose and closed the door behind her, “Jeez, Ward, you really know how to give a girl a heart attack.” she muttered, dropping her bag as he came out of the shadows. 

He raised an eyebrow, “You’re Inhuman, too, Skye.” he stated. “You couldn’t feel your surroundings or anything?”

“Well, sometimes. But, I have to be focusing in order to do so.” she answered, looking around the small apartment, which was, surprisingly, well-decorated. “I’m kind of running for my life here, Ward. Everything’s all over the place for me at the moment.” She frowned and looked at him, “I can feel you  _ now _ .”

Grant scoffed, “You need to work on that then.” he said, walking away from her towards a small kitchenette. “If Coulson figures out what you’ve done, he’ll send men after you. You have to be aware of your surroundings at all times.”

“Sounds like you’ve had experience.”

“I  _ was  _ a top ranking SHIELD agent, Skye.” he answered as he opened the fridge. “I was already able to tell my surroundings at all times. The powers just give it a little extra boost. Humans have a completely different heat sig than Inhumans. Weapons give off a particular sig depending on the type of weapon. So, I can tell whether or not there’s an armed man after me.”

“So, this has happened a lot in the past few months?”

“Some. Not a lot. Oh, and, Skye?”

“Yeah?”

“You can take that pistol out the band of your pants. There’s no need to be armed around me.” He stood up with two beers in his hands. “I think you can trust me.”

Daisy grew flustered as she pulled her gun on, placing it on the small island that separated her and Grant. She frowned as Grant slid one of the beers towards her. “Really? You’re drinking at now of all times?”

Grant sighed, “This has always been a secure location.” he stated, popping the top off of his beer and pulling up a stool. “We’ll be okay for a few days. But, we’re not staying for long. Just long enough to get our bearings and try to figure out what the hell we’re going to do.” He looked her up and down as he sat, “No one else knows where you’ve gone, right?”

“Well…” Daisy stared at her beer. 

“ _ Skye _ .”

“Only Fitz knows.” she answered. “He caught me while I was packing up. I kind of told him everything. But, I figured that he deserved to know that Simmons is on Coulson’s side. He was… He was kind of distraught about that.”

Grant took a long sip before sitting the bottle down onto the counter. “I kind of figured that he would be. Fitz and Simmons… They’re like this.” He held up a hand and crossed two fingers together. “I’m surprised that he hadn’t already figured  _ something  _ out, but then again no one knew about Coulson. They’re doing a pretty good job in hiding the truth about the ATCU from everyone else.”

“I still wanna know to  _ why _ , though.” Daisy muttered, looking down at the counter. “I always thought that Coulson liked me. That he thought me as valuable.”

“Has it ever occurred to you that he only thought you as valuable because he could exploit your powers?” Grant asked, taking another sip. “That you were the weapon he could control because he already had your trust?”

Daisy looked up, her face pale, “What do you mean?”

He sighed, “Coulson’s always liked some kind of control. Order.” he began to explain. “He was that way before the team, just not this bad. I think he views the Inhumans as something out of his control, that’s why he uses the ATCU to control them. He already had your trust and he was already manipulating you by the time the Inhumans had a problem. You were the one Inhuman he  _ could  _ control. That’s why he treated you the way he did. Because you were the one thing he could control. You just didn’t realize it.”

She swallowed, not sure of what to think. “You seem so sure about that.”

Grant’s eyes darkened as he looked away, “It happens to the best of us.” he muttered, his mind flashing to Garrett. “All that matters is that you were able to see Coulson for who he really is before it was too late. Before he started using you against Inhumans. Knowing him, he would’ve labeled an Inhuman as ‘dangerous’ just to get your cooperation. All that matters now is that you’re here and we can do something about it.”

Daisy was still trying to wrap her mind around things. A part of her wanted to quake Coulson’s ass, another wanted to try and bring back the man he once had been. Or had that all been a lie? Like how ‘perfect SHIELD Agent Ward’ was all a lie? Honestly, all she wanted for now was to put a stop to Coulson’s shit before it was too late.

“Then what do we do?”

Grant looked back to her, “There’s a Pro-Humanity rally tomorrow that I plan to break up.” he stated. “I’d rather not have you there to avoid suspicion. If Coulson saw you there now, he would definitely start to put two and two together. And we really don’t need that right now.”

Daisy frowned, “Then what do you want me to do, Ward?”

“You stay here. Find a way to hack into SHIELD/ATCU records to find bases, experiments, anything that you can get your hands onto without tripping alarm.” he explained. “You’re even more than welcome to pull up my files if you can. Experimenting on a criminal may not be the best proof, but it’s still proof of Coulson’s cruelty. I just wanna know if he approved it or not. The first base you can find, I’m lighting it up. After getting the Inhumans out, of course. But, they’re the only ones that I’ll save.

Anyone that’s ATCU or SHIELD, I’m leaving behind.” he continued. “They’re monsters anyways. They’re the ones experimenting on people like us, Skye. We can’t allow them to keep doing that.”

“But… Is killing them the way to go, though?”

“I have to thin their numbers. If I find out Coulson  _ did  _ approve the experiments on me, I  _ will  _ give him hell. I am sure of that, Skye. I know that he hates me for what I did, but that doesn’t give him permission to have my arm ripped off ten fucking times!” His voice suddenly morphed into a growl, his eyes flaring red. He stopped and took a breath, running his hands through his hair. “Skye, you don’t understand what I went through for those 6 months. If Coulson’s responsible for my brother’s death and that torture I went through.” He smiled grimly, “There won’t even be a single  _ cinder  _ left when I’m done with him.”

“There has to be some other way, Ward.”

“I know that you think you can bring him back, Skye. But, Coulson was never the good guy.” Grant said, finishing off the rest of his beer. He stood up, “You just have to find a way to believe that. Just like I had to do with Garrett.” 

Grant walked away and left Daisy sitting there all alone. She continued to stare at her untouched beer. 

Truly, she didn’t know of  _ what  _ to think. Could Grant be telling the truth? Was Coulson just her Garrett? Grant had been so blind to who Garrett really was that he didn’t see that the man was evil. Had she been the same exact way with Coulson because she had felt that Coulson was some kind of savior? Had just been blind to the man’s true nature?

Had Coulson never been the good guy after all of this time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so Daisy and Grant have met up and somewhat have a plan. Any guesses of what's to come next? Keep the comments and kudos coming!

**Author's Note:**

> Just a last-ditch effort at something new! Find me on Tumblr @grantwrd!


End file.
